In South Korea, DeepSeek has suspended downloads while officials look into privacy concerns. Is this a new front in the global digital competition or is it about data security, as limitations and bans are growing from Italy to Australia and the US?
South Korean officials announced Monday that DeepSeek, a Chinese artificial intelligence startup, has temporarily suspended the download of its chatbot apps in the country while it collaborates with regional authorities to resolve privacy issues.
DeepSeek’s apps were taken down from the local versions of Google Play and Apple’s App Store on Saturday night, according to the South Korean Personal Information Protection Commission. The company also pledged to collaborate with the commission to improve privacy safeguards before rereleasing the apps.
Those who have already downloaded DeepSeek to their phones or use it on their PCs are unaffected by the action. South Korean users of DeepSeek were instructed by Nam Seok, director of the investigation division of the South Korean commission, to remove the program from their devices or refrain from entering personal information into the tool until the problems are fixed.
Due to concerns that the AI model was collecting too much private data, some South Korean government organizations and businesses have either banned DeepSeek from their networks or forbidden staff members from using the app for work.
According to Nam, the South Korean privacy commission, which started examining DeepSeek’s offerings last month, discovered that the business may have gathered too much personal data and lacked openness on third-party data transfers.
According to Nam, the commission lacked an assessment of the South Korean DeepSeek user base. According to a recent analysis by Wiseapp Retail, DeepSeek became the second most popular AI model after ChatGPT, with around 1.2 million smartphone users in South Korea using it during the fourth week of January.
Reluctance in numerous nations
Several governments, ranging from Rome to Canberra, are taking strong action against the Chinese app, claiming that they must stop any possible disclosure of private data via generative AI services.
Italy was the first to step in, opening an investigation into DeepSeek and declaring that it was preventing the new Chinese software from obtaining the data of Italian users. In 2023, ChatGPT, a Western competitor, was momentarily barred by Italy’s Data Protection Authority.
Italy’s moves might be a sign of a more extensive European reaction. CNIL, France’s data protection body, has stated that it plans to investigate DeepSeek’s AI technologies.
Then, claiming that DeepSeek was a Chinese product that might jeopardize national security, Taiwan prohibited its use by employees in the public sector and at critical infrastructure facilities.
Days later, Australia did the same. However, the Australian government has maintained that the “unacceptable risk” the app poses to national security is the reason for the prohibition, not the fact that it originated in China.
A “No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act” has also been proposed by US lawmakers. Congressman Darin LaHood called the national security threat presented by the “Chinese Communist Party – affiliated company” DeepSeek to the US “alarming”.
New York, Virginia, and Texas also adopted state-level prohibitions. Greg Abbott, the governor of Texas, stated that data “must be protected from malicious espionage operations by the Chinese Communist Party”.
Tech politics or privacy risk?
Notably, DeepSeek’s terms and conditions have a section about sharing personal information with other parties, which is quite similar to the one in OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
“In China, companies are legally required to provide user data when the government requests access”, Youm Heung-youl, a professor of data security at Soonchunhyang University, told AFP.
According to Beijing, the limitations emphasize “the politicization of economic, trade, and technological issues” rather than valid national security concerns.
Chinese authorities “will never require enterprises or individuals to illegally collect or store data”, according to the statement.
Although US tech companies frequently resist government demands, previous instances like TikTok, Snap, X, Discord, and Meta show that they can also be examined, pressed, or forced to cooperate when under duress.
China’s aspirations in AI
The vast amount of research and development (R&D) investor in the world, behind the United States, but it grew at the fastest rate, with its investment volume more than 11 times over the last ten years, according to data from the Korea Chamber of Commerce.
When DeepSeek revealed a chatbot in January that matched the performance of its US competitors while claiming a significantly cheaper training cost, the globe was taken aback.
According to DeepSeek, its massive learning model is powered by less-advanced H800 chips, which are allowed to be sold to China until 2023 due to US export restrictions.
Powerhouses that export semiconductors, Taiwan and South Korea, have been prospering from sales of advanced chips, but DeepSeek has caused chaos in the sector.
According to Park Ki-soon, a professor of Chinese economics at Sungkyunkwan University, “if DeepSeek really used H800, it means that even without cutting-edge semiconductors, similar outcomes could be achieved with general semiconductors, as long as the software is good”, AFP said.
He stated, “Countries like the US and China are investing massive amounts of talent and resources into software development”, and that DeepSeek demonstrated the necessity for governments to “provide support to foster this growth” in order to further encourage this.
